European tourism award for Loop Head

LOOP Head in West Clare was revealed as the winner of Ireland’s European Destination of Excellence 2010 on Wednesday afternoon.

Held across 22 EU states, the competition is funded and organised by Fáilte Ireland and the European Union. The competition sought a sustainable tourism destination in Ireland, which demonstrated an innovative approach to aquatic and marine tourism.
The adjudicators were particularly impressed with what they described as “the energy and enthusiasm” of the local groups and the range of aquatic activities that are available on Loop Head peninsula.
Fiona Monaghan, head of operations for Fáilte Ireland in the west, believes Loop Head will benefit from the award and said the area will now represent Ireland at the EU tourism day in October.
“This will be just the start of a valuable cross-learning initiative with other similar EU destinations. Participation in initiatives, such as this European Destination of Excellence Competition, can only boost the profile of these destinations and generate tourism revenue,” she stated.
Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport, Mary Hanafin said the award will be of huge benefit to West Clare tourism.
“The Loop Head tourism project shows the significant achievements that can be made when the local community and tourism enterprises strive together. I have no doubt that the winning of this prestigious award will have real benefits for the local tourism sector in Clare and Ireland generally,” she said.
Loop Head will be the subject of a photo shoot and short video and the local committee will receive €5,000 for business development support initiatives in the coming months.
In addition, the EU will provide international promotion of Loop Head and e-marketing opportunities, as well as participation in an EU network of European Destinations of Excellence, which will also raise the profile of the destination. A national awards ceremony will be held by Fáilte Ireland in June.
Meanwhile, Kilrush town councillor Tom Prendeville has suggested that establishing ‘seven wonders of Clare’ could help to invigorate the tourism sector in the county.
He made his suggestion at last Thursday’s monthly meeting of Kilrush Town Council, which heard trenchant criticism of tourism interests in West Clare, who are responsible for marketing the region to potential visitors. Councillor Prendeville also said that if Scattery Island off Kilrush was marketed properly, it could potentially attract huge tourist numbers.
However, Councillor Stephen O’Gorman claimed that the primary motivation for some people within the tourism sector in Clare is self-publicity, while he also proposed “doing a Riverdance” to ensure that West Clare tourism is afforded some attention.
“It’s photographs and names mentioned in the paper they want,” Councillor O’Gorman said of those whose task it is to attract visitors to the west of the county.
“I’d like to take exception to those comments,” Councillor Liam O’Looney retorted, while Mayor of Kilrush, Marian McMahon Jones pointed out that all Kilrush town councillors are members of the West Clare Tourism Taskforce.
“Can we decide that we’re going to do something?” Councillor Ian Lynch asked. He described the current marketing approach to Scattery Island as “disjointed”, while the meeting heard that festivals in West Clare towns and villages are promoted independently with little combined marketing between festivals or events.